Cross-dressing nurse impersonator jailed for fraud

Fraudster and nurse impersonator Turori Wheturangi Chapman was jailed for two years and three months in Wanganui District Court yesterday.

Chapman was sentenced on 34 charges of fraud and four of impersonating a nurse.

He was charged last October after handing himself in to Wanganui police while he was being hunted nationally after complaints of a man impersonating a female nurse at Christchurch Hospital.

Crown prosecutor Andrew Cameron said Chapman's record of more than 100 offences included at least six when he had passed himself off as a woman police officer.

Chapman appeared to have "a serious need" for a sense of power or authority and achieved that by impersonating authority figures.

It was that aspect of his offending that caused the greatest concern for the public.

Both Mr Cameron and defence lawyer Roger Crowley urged that Chapman be given every possible psychiatric and psychological help to break his long record of offending.

Judge John Clapham agreed Chapman needed help.

He said the aggravating features of the offending were the number of offences, the fact that Chapman had identified "easy marks" to prey on, the premeditated nature of the offending and his list of previous convictions.

Unusually, the value of the fraud charges was low - just under $5400.

- NZPA